EP45 - ADDAMS FAMILY (THANKSGIVING) VALUES

HEY EVERYONE. SO TODAY’S EPISODE IS GOING TO BE VERY DIFFERENT THAN I ORIGINALLY PLANNED. I’M SURE YOU CAN HEAR IT IN MY VOICE. I’VE BEEN SICK FOR OVER A WEEK NOW AND IT’S TOTALLY SCREWED UP RECORDING SCHEDULES. SO THAT’S A THING. ALSO TODAY IS THANKSGIVING, IF YOU CELEBRATE THAT SORT OF THING, AND SO WHILE THAT DOESN’T STOP ME AT ALL FROM CREATING AN EPISODE, I DON’T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE REALLY GOING TO BE LISTENING TO OR LOOKING FOR ONE TODAY.

ALSO WHILE I STRUGGLE WITH THE HISTORY BEHIND THANKSGIVING - THE COLONIALISM AND VIOLENCE - I’M NOT GOING TO LIE AND TELL YOU I DON’T APPRECIATE THE IDEA OF GRATITUDE AND THANKFULNESS THAT COMES WITH THE HOLIDAY. I ALSO IMMENSELY ENJOY PIE. SO THAT’S MOSTLY WHY I DO THANKSGIVING AT ALL. LIKE MY SISTER IN LAW MAKES THE BEST CHOCOLATE PECAN AND PUMPKIN PIE. IT’S DELICIOUS. IT’S A MINOR DETAIL OF WHY I APPRECIATE THANKSGIVING.

SO, IN COMBINATION OF ALL THESE THINGS: THAT I FEEL LIKE MY VOICE SOUNDS LIKE TRASH, THAT IT’S THANKSGIVING, AND APPARENTLY THAT I JUST WANT TO EAT PIE INSTEAD, HERE’S THE SHORTEST OF EPISODES. LET’S KEEP WITH THE THANKSGIVING THEME, SHALL WE?

I’M MORGAN JAFFE, AND THIS IS BURST YOUR BUBBLE.

I NEVER PLANNED TO DO A THANKSGIVING EPISODE THAT FOCUSED ON NATIVE PEOPLE. IT FEELS LIKE A WEIRD SITUATION OF “HEY, I’M GOING TO DO AN EPISODE ON NATIVE PEOPLE” LIKE THAT’S THE ONLY OPTION OF WHEN TO DO IT, INSINUATING THAT NATIVE CULTURE CAN’T AND SHOULDN’T BE CELEBRATED ALL YEAR. IT’S LIKE ONLY TALKING ABOUT BLACK HISTORY AND HIGHLIGHTING BLACK VOICES DURING FEBRUARY, OR ONLY CELEBRATING WOMEN’S HISTORY DURING MARCH OR ONLY CELEBRATING OR HIGHLIGHTING LATINX VOICES DURING THAT SEPTEMBER 15TH THROUGH OCTOBER 15TH TIME FRAME. BUT SOMEHOW HERE WE ARE - A THANKSGIVING EPISODE. I MEAN, NOT MAYBE A TRADITIONAL ONE, BUT TECHNICALLY A THANKSGIVING EPISODE NONETHELESS.

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ? IT’S THE 1993 SEQUEL TO THE 1991 MOVIE. FOR THE MOST PART, THE FILM IS REALLY ABOUT AND HIS WEIRD

1 RELATIONSHIP WITH A KILLER BABYSITTER NAMED DEBBIE. YADA YADA YADA, DEBBIE WANTS FORTUNE AND CAUSES A RIFT AMONG THE FAMILY.

BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT I WANT TO TALK ABOUT TODAY. I WANT TO TALK ABOUT WEDNESDAY AND . SEE, DEBBIE HAS SOMEHOW GOTTEN THE KIDS SHIPPED OF TO SUMMER CAMP - A SUMMER CAMP THAT, FOR SOME REASON IS PUTTING ON A THANKSGIVING PLAY. AND THE PLAY IS RUN BY THE CAMP DIRECTORS, HUSBAND AND WIFE TEAM GARY GRANGER AND BECKY-MARTIN GRANGER. THE TWO OF THEM ARE AN AWFUL COUPLE, AND THEY SHOW US A LOT OF TERRIBLE -ISMS. ELITISM. CLASSISM. RACISM. ABLEISM. ANTI-SEMITISM. THEY DON’T ACCEPT OTHERS WHO ARE “DIFFERENT,” AND THEY CERTAINLY DON’T LIKE WEDNESDAY AND PUGSLEY.

AFTER TRYING TO CHANGE THEM AND MAKE THEM “NORMAL” AND “ACCEPTABLE” AND ALL OF THAT - AND THINKING THEY HAVE SUCCEEDED - THEY CAST THE KIDS IN THE CAMP PLAY, WRITTEN BY GARY GRANGER HIMSELF.

WEDNESDAY HAS BEEN CAST AS POCAHONTAS AND PUGSLEY AS THE THANKSGIVING TURKEY. WEDNESDAYS ARCH NEMESIS AMANDA HAS BEEN CAST AS THE LEAD PILGRIM, SARAH MILLER.

ALL OF THE PILGRIMS ARE BLONDE HAIRED, BLUE EYED, WEALTHY WHITE CAMPERS. ON THE OTHER HAND, ALL OF THE NATIVES ARE THE CAMP OUTSIDERS. THE TOKEN ASIAN CAMPER. THE TOKEN LATINX CAMPER. THE TOKEN BLACK CAMPER. THE TOKEN CAMPER WHO USES A WHEELCHAIR. THE TOKEN JEWISH CAMPER. YOU GET IT. ANY AND ALL OUTSIDERS, ONE AND ALL.

CLIP: BECKY MARTIN-GRANGER LISTING OFF THE KIDS WHO WILL PLAY NATIVES IN THE PLAY AS OTHERS LAUGH.

AGAIN, THE FILM SHOWS THAT THE COUNSELORS ARE TERRIBLE PEOPLE, AND SO ARE THE CAMPERS THAT THEY FAVOR. THE FILM SHOWS THE PILGRIMS AS IN THE WRONG, AND THE MORE AMANDA SAYS HER PILGRIM LINES THE MORE YOU HATE HER - BOTH AS A PILGRIM AND AS A PERSON.

CLIP: AMANDA’S LINE IN THE PLAY, “WHY YOU ARE CIVILIZED AS WE - EXCEPT WE WEAR SHOES AND HAVE LAST NAMES. WELCOME TO OUR TABLE, OUR NEW PRIMITIVE FRIENDS,”

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AMANDA’S CHARACTER CALLS THE NATIVES “PRIMITIVE” AND “STRANGE” AND USES THE WORD “SAVAGE” TWICE.

THE BIGGEST THING I LOVE IS THAT THE MOVIE SETS WEDNESDAY UP AS SOMEONE YOU WANT TO ROOT FOR AS SHE TURNS TO AMANDA, ON THIS STAGE IN FRONT OF ALL OF THESE TERRIBLE PARENTS, AND REWRITES THE SCRIPT THE CAMP DIRECTORS HAVE GIVEN HER.

CLIP: “YOU HAVE TAKEN THE LAND WHICH IS RIGHTFULLY OURS. YEARS FROM NOW MY PEOPLE WILL BE FORCED TO LIVE IN MOBILE HOMES ON RESERVATIONS. YOUR PEOPLE WILL WEAR CARDIGANS, AND DRINK HIGHBALLS. WE WILL SELL OUR BRACELETS BY THE ROADSIDES. YOU WILL PAY GOLF AND ENJOY HOT HOR D’OEUVRES. MY PEOPLE WILL HAVE PAIN AND DEGRADATION. YOUR PEOPLE WILL HAVE STICK SHIFTS. THE GODS OF MY TRIBE HAVE SPOKEN. THEY HAVE SAID DO NOT TRUST THE PILGRIMS - ESPECIALLY SARAH MILLER. ”

AND THIS IS THE CLIP YOU MIGHT KNOW, EVEN IF YOU DON’T REALLY REMEMBER THE MOVIE. I SEE IT POSTED ONLINE A LOT, NOW DURING THANKSGIVING ESPECIALLY. IT’S AN ALMOST PERFECT SPEECH THAT I WISHED HAD ENDED THERE, BUT THEN WEDNESDAY CONTINUES:

CLIP: “AND FOR ALL THESE REASONS I HAVE DECIDED TO SCALP YOU AND BURN YOUR VILLAGE TO THE GROUND.” (THE CLIP CONTINUES, THE RUCKUS AND WHOOPING AND YELLING CONTINUING IN THE BACKGROUND.)

AND THEN IT BEGINS. YOU HAVE ALL THESE CAMPERS CAST AS NATIVE PEOPLE PUSHING THE PARENTS OUT OF THEIR CHAIRS AND PIEING THEM IN THE FACE, THROWING PEOPLE INTO THE LAKE, AND BURNING THE CAMP TO THE GROUND.

WEDNESDAY AND PUGSLEY TIE AMANDA UP ON A STAKE OVER A PILE OF LOGS AND STUFF AN APPLE IN HER MOUTH TO STOP HER FROM SCREAMING. THEY COVER THE LOGS IN GASOLINE AND SHOW WEDNESDAY AFTER SHE LIGHTS A MATCH, PRESUMABLY SECONDS BEFORE SHE SETS AMANDA ABLAZE. IF WE DIDN’T SEE AMANDA LATER IN THE FILM, I WOULD HAVE ASSUMED SHE WAS DEAD.

3 THIS WHOLE CATASTROPHIC SCENE ENDS WITH THE CAMPERS WHO WERE NATIVES IN THE PLAY CALM AND HAPPY. THEY SIT ON THE STAGE AT THE THANKSGIVING TABLE, SURROUNDED BY THE BURNING SET, WAITING FOR THEIR MEAL - AND THEN IT CUTS TO WHAT’S COOKING: THE CAMP DIRECTORS HAVE BEEN TIED UP, THEIR MOUTHS STUFFED WITH APPLES TOO, AND THOUGH STILL ALIVE THEY ARE BEING TURNED ON A SPIT OVER A FIRE.BECAUSE YEAH, LET’S SHOW NATIVE PEOPLE AS CANNIBALS TOO.

SO YES, I’M TAKING A MOMENT JUST TO PUT ALL THIS IN PERSPECTIVE. IT COULD HAVE BEEN A GREAT SCENE - BUT THEN THE MOVIE FELL BACK ON OLD STEREOTYPES, JUST THE SAME AS USING “SAVAGE” AND “”PRIMITIVE” AND “STRANGE”

I’M MORGAN JAFFE AND THAT WAS BURST YOUR BUBBLE.

AGAIN, HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE SHORTEST EPISODE EVER.

AS ALWAYS, A HUGE THANK YOU TO JEREMY FERRIS, WHO DOES THE ART FOR EACH EPISODE OF THE SHOW. I FIGURED I KINDA HAD A DAY OFF TODAY, SO HE GETS ONE AS WELL. YOU CAN SEE EVERYTHING HE’S CREATED OVER AT BURSTYOURBUBBLEPODCAST.COM.

AND WHILE YOU’RE ON THE WEBSITE YOU CAN ALSO CHECK OUT THE SCRIPT FOR TODAY’S EPISODE.

IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY, PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE SHOW, LEAVE A REVIEW, AND FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

BURST YOUR BUBBLE IS RELEASED THE 2ND AND 4TH THURSDAY OF THE MONTH. THE NEXT EPISODE WILL BE RELEASED DECEMBER 13TH.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING, I’LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME, HERE’S HOPING MY VOICE GETS BETTER SOON, AND HAVE A GOOD ONE!

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